Tenant Representation

Securing Commercial Expansion Space Without Paying For It
By Forrest Blake, Senior Vice President of SVN Commercial - Phone 310-850-2381 - CalBRE Lic # 01054174
If your company expects to grow at some point during the lease term, you’ll want to negotiate a must-take provision. This lets you lock in expansion space rights upon the start of the lease.
For example, if a tenant signs a lease for 1½ floors but knows half a floor will sit empty until next year, I’ll negotiate a must-take expansion for that space in 12 months. The tenant effectively gets free rent for half a floor over...

Commercial Lease Total Rent Exposure Part 4
By Forrest Blake, Senior Vice President of SVN Commercial - Phone 310-850-2381 - CalBRE Lic # 01054174
In our last video, we discussed how parking space and after-hours HVAC impact your effective rent. Let’s now look at more factors affecting your total occupancy cost.
My team works hard with the tenant to get the most concessions. These are items deducted from the total occupancy costs over time to establish an effective rent. Examples include beneficial occupancy, free rent, free parking, tenant improvements, and moving allowances.
https://youtu.be/tC09k8mIV8E
If...

Commercial Lease Total Rent Exposure Part 3
By Forrest Blake, Senior Vice President of SVN Commercial - Phone 310-850-2381 - CalBRE Lic # 01054174
Decision makers must have a clear picture of the total occupancy cost to eliminate surprises and to maintain cash flow and profitability. An accurate budget with both variable and fixed expenses will help the team make the right decision between staying in the current building or relocating.
In our last video, we focused on the impact of property tax increases on your total occupancy cost or effective rent. Let’s now look at parking space...

Commercial Lease Total Rent Exposure Part 2
By Forrest Blake, Senior Vice President of SVN Commercial - Phone 310-850-2381 - CalBRE Lic # 01054174
Due to the many components that make up the true cost of a leased space, identifying and budgeting for it can be difficult. Factor in landlord concessions and you arrive at what’s called “effective rent.”
In this video we’ll look at the impact of tax increases.
A rapid increase in property values and when exactly the landlord sells the building may dramatically impact the tenant’s expense. For example, a building purchased years...

Commercial Lease Total Rent Exposure Part 1
By Forrest Blake, Senior Vice President of SVN Commercial - Phone 310-850-2381 - CalBRE Lic # 01054174
Decision makers must have a clear picture of the total occupancy cost to eliminate surprises and to maintain cash flow and profitability. An accurate budget with both variable and fixed expenses will help the team make the right decision between staying in the current building or relocating.
In this video we’ll focus on annual base rent increases and all those confusing operating expenses.
https://youtu.be/PeBury35304
If you enjoyed...

By Forrest Blake, Senior Vice President of SVN Commercial - Phone 310-850-2381 - CalBRE Lic # 01054174
This subject creates anxiety for many Partners. Landlords on most long-term multi-million dollar commercial leases require personal guarantees from professional services firms. When a firm’s cash flow goes negative or the partners split up and the leased space is no longer affordable or needed, under a lease default situation the landlord is going to want a personal guarantee of payment under the terms of the lease.
The landlord, in an attempt to mitigate their damages, does have the right...

By Forrest Blake, Senior Vice President SVN Commercial - 310-850-2381 CalBRE Lic # 01054174
Welcome to 2018. To say there will be substantial change this year is an understatement. In this newsletter edition, I'd like to share with you my predictions on how these changes will affect you and your work environment. Please enjoy.
1. Rents Will Rise
Gone are the days of 50-100 different landlords in a given submarket. With fewer landlords competing for your lease means, rents will continue to increase in the new year. Read More
2. Traditional Offices are Disappearing
Technological...

Tenant Perspective - Part 4
4. Operating expenses
Many tenants fail to adequately scrutinize and negotiate the language within the operating expense provision of the lease. If the language is vague or unclear, the landlord may have the right and take the opportunity to charge a tenant for items not included in a previous lease. This could mean an increase in management fees, advertising expenses and parking garage operations, even when the tenant is already paying for parking spaces. Additionally, utilities and basic operating expenses for buildings have been increasing steadily for the past...

2. Playing monopoly
The days of 50 to 100 different commercial landlords existing in a given submarket are over. Today, fewer and fewer players have stakes in the ownership of buildings. For example, Douglas Emmett, Inc. (NYSE:DEI) owns 53 percent of the class A office square footage in Woodland Hills, California. With few competitive choices for tenants, a landlord with market share can confidently and rapidly drive rents higher. Tenants can find themselves with only two options: renew and pay more rent, or move out of the market.
Click Here for the 3rd factor.
For more information or to answer...

NEW LEASE ACCOUNTING IS A NIGHTMARE
Presented by: Forrest Blake | Senior Vice President | SVN Commercial | 310-850-2381 | Lic # 01054174
WHAT IS HAPPENING?
Financial Accounting Standard Board (FASB) has created new guidelines on how a company will report their lease obligations. Leases beyond twelve months will be required to be moved onto the balance sheet. Firms must record all future lease payments for the term of the lease as a liability at the start of the lease. Additionally, tenants will be required to include extension options.
FASB TIME LINE
POSSIBLE TROUBLE FOR TENANTS
POSSIBLE...